Press Release courtesy of Little Rock Athletics
Down 2-1 for the match, Little Rock volleyball rallied to defeat ULM in five sets (25-15, 23-25, 23-25, 25-12, 15-10) and earned its 31st consecutive win against the Warhawks on Saturday night at the Jack Stephens Center. The 31-match winning streak against ULM began in 1992.
Veronica Marin led the Trojans (7-14, 3-6 Sun Belt) with 17 kills and a .552 hitting percentage on 29 swings with just one error. She also added five total blocks (two solo and three assisted) and two aces. Sydnee Martin tallied 23 digs to extend her streak to four consecutive matches with 20-plus digs while adding seven assists. Taylor Lindberg put up her third double-double of the year with 46 assists and 12 digs while adding four total blocks (two solo and two assisted). With her 41st assist of the night, Lindberg became the sixth player in program history with 2,000 career assists. Marina Avram tallied her eighth double-double of the season with 12 kills and 14 digs while leading the match with six total blocks (four solo and two assisted). Avram’s four solo blocks tied for the ninth-most in the rally-scoring era.
Mikaela Worley led the match with 22 kills while Tara Jenkins added 41 assists for the Warhawks (4-21, 0-8 Sun Belt). Kacey Leblanc scooped up 23 digs while Catherine Griffin tallied three total blocks.
After tying the match at 2-2 in the fourth set, Little Rock’s momentum carried over to the fifth frame as it closed out the match with a five-point victory. The Trojans hit .350 for the set while ULM hit a flat .000. Marin and Mya Robinson each put down four kills during the set while Avram put up two solo blocks. Four of Little Rock’s 16 blocks occurred during the fifth set.
Down 2-1 entering the fourth set, Little Rock tied the match with its best performance of the night. Little Rock hit a match-high .448 for the set while ULM hit .029. Avram and Marin each put down five kills while Lindberg tallied 11 assists. Martin scooped up seven digs while Avram had three total blocks. Blocks were big for Little Rock as it put up five during the set.
The Trojans dug themselves a hole during the third set as ULM went on to take a 2-1 lead for the match with a two-point victory. The set was by far the closest of the night as there were 18 tie scores throughout the frame. The difference in the set came down to kills as ULM put down 17 compared to Little Rock’s 10.
After a 10-point thumping in the first set, ULM rebounded in the second frame with a two-point win. The Warhawks had their best set of the night statistically as they hit .361 compared to the Trojans’ .278. Worley put down seven kills for the Warhawks while Marin and Daisha Gillard had four each. Sydnee Martin led the set with eight digs.
Little Rock got the match started on a hot note as it took the first set with a 10-point victory. Helping the Trojans was an 11-0 run after starting the set down 2-1. The Trojans hit well with a .342 hitting percentage while ULM got off to a slow start by hitting -.065. Gillard led the Trojans with five kills as Lindberg put up 10 digs.
Gillard finished the match with a career-high 14 kills, a .417 hitting percentage and three total blocks (two solo and one assisted). Robinson ended the match with 12 kills, an ace and six digs while Maritza Mesa tallied six kills with eight digs and two total blocks. Tamaira Armstrong earned one kill, and Kassidy Hopkins dug up three digs.
Little Rock’s 11 solo blocks tied for the fourth most in program history and tied for the second most in the rally-scoring era. The team’s 16 total blocks tied for the eighth-most in the rally-scoring era.
The Trojans ended the match with the advantage in kills (67-52), hitting (.302-.112), assists (59-49), aces (4-3) and blocks (16-5). Both teams tallied 71 digs for the match.
Little Rock will now hit the road to face South Alabama and Troy on Friday and Saturday in Alabama.
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